Apple's iPhones will soon support USB-C charging, company said - USA TODAY

The mode you complaint the iPhone could soon change.

Greg Joswiak, Apple's elder vice president of worldwide marketing, said the institution volition comply with an European Union law requiring mobile devices each enactment USB-C charging.

The comments made during The Wall Street Journal's Tech Live lawsuit look to corroborate aboriginal iPhones volition driblet the company's proprietary Lightning connector for USB-C.

"Obviously we'll person to comply," Joswiak said erstwhile asked astir the EU law. "We person nary prime arsenic we bash astir around the satellite to comply to section laws."

Apple introduced the Lightning connector successful 2012 with the motorboat of the iPhone 5, replacing the classical 30-pin dock connector disposable connected aboriginal models of the smartphone.

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Why is Apple moving to USB-C?

Earlier this month, the European Parliament approved a instrumentality requiring a azygous charging cord for each smartphones and mobile devices specified arsenic laptops oregon wireless headphones.

The rules would necessitate each mobile phones, tablets and cameras sold successful EU countries to diagnostic a USB-C charging larboard by 2024, portion laptops would person until 2026. 

Why is the EU requiring this?

The EU said the caller instrumentality volition prevention consumers from having to walk wealth connected assorted charging cords to support their mobile devices powered. Officials besides said the requirements volition assistance curb physics discarded from obsolete chargers and forestall consumers from being locked into a circumstantial shaper due to the fact that of a proprietary charging standard.

What astir the U.S.?

In June, lawmakers pushed the U.S. Commerce Department to follow a cosmopolitan standard for charging mobile devices akin to the EU law.

Lawmakers mention wealth spent by consumers connected assorted chargers for antithetic products and physics discarded arsenic reasons for pushing to necessitate a cosmopolitan standard.

What does Apple think?

Apple has been 1 the main holdouts successful the displacement to USB-C, specifically for the iPhone. The institution has antecedently said it's acrophobic the rules would bounds innovation and wounded consumers. 

What could this mean for aboriginal iPhones?

Those Lightning cables could soon go obsolete successful the U.S., overmuch similar the 30-pin connector earlier it. Apple has not said erstwhile it would present USB-C to iPhones, but it's apt the company's aboriginal smartphones volition enactment the technology. Apple is already investigating iPhones with enactment for USB-C, Bloomberg reported successful May.

Apple already has respective devices that enactment USB-C charging, including newer models of the iPad and immoderate models of the MacBook.

Contributing: Amanda Pérez Pintado, The Associated Press

Follow Brett Molina connected Twitter: @brettmolina23.